Tuesday, August 23, 2011

HEIDI'S PICK SIX: Patti Roberts

1. Which of your characters is your favorite? Oh my god, that is impossible. That is like asking a mother to chose a favourite. I can’t do it. But I will say that I like writing for Angela and Abaddon.A

2. Tell me about your travels. I travel a lot through Malaysia with my family when I was younger. I love Singapore and Penang.

4. What else can you do besides write? Sing, dance, act, skydive and sailing. Well actually no. But I did go sailing every weekend when I was a kid. I sing in the shower. Dance in my dreams. Act-up every opportunity I get. Skydive, not a chance. I like the taking off and the landing part way to much to jump out of a perfectly good aircraft.

5. Who are you reading right now? Justin Cronin – The Passage.

6. Pop culture or academia? Pop

7. What is the toughest scene you ever wrote? None of them a tough. Some are more emotional tho that others.

8. Where do you find your inspirations to write? From within. Awake and asleep.

9. Food you could eat everyday. Seafood! Pasta.

10. Are you into sports or other physical activities? Not really.

11. What kind of music speaks to you? Lots of different kinds. I like listening to the lyrics. Songs are short stories with music.

12. Do you outline your stories or do they just take you along for the ride? Oh I am defiantly on the ride.

On any given day you can usually find me sitting at my desk in front of my laptop pounding away at the keys writing another chapter in the Paradox series. That would be a run of the mill kinda day for me!

A packet of Cruskits and a water bottle, that is now at room temperature, is sitting on the desk beside me. There is also a mass of USB cables, notepads, bills to be paid, bills to be filed a bunch of pens and a printer that is forever running out of ink. Sound familiar?

On most days I have to remind myself to eat and drink. I should be thinner!!!

I am sure my housemates are very thankful that I still manage (usually at some ungodly hour) to bathe, brush my hair and clean my teeth.

I don't know about you. But I am usually mortified when visitors just pop around, only to find me sitting at my desk and still in my PJ's. I don't even want to broach the hair situation! Did I remember to put last nights dishes away???

Now, they say to be a good writer, you must read, read, read. Then read some more...

Thankfully, due to the invention of the electronic reader (I have a Kindle and love it) I get to read more these days. Correction. I have my Kindle read to me! The only thing is, I have so many great books on my Kindle that it is so hard to know where to start. So many choices.

NEWS Lettered Edition of Ambasadora

PUBLICATIONS I am so excited to share this special lettered hardcover edition of AMBASADORA: Marked By Light from Dog Star Books . There ...

NEWS Starrie in Publishers Weekly

Nice review from Publisher's Weekly for Starrie (From the World of Ambasadora)!
"Miller’s short third novel in the space-faring, caste-bound, hierarchically polyamorous, and socially striated Ambasadora universe (after 2013’s Greenshift) manages to balance the exoticized presentation of the setting with relatable human interaction...the romance between Ben and Naela highlights the emotional side of reaching out to those who are different from you, even in a world where those differences are stylized and codified."

TALKING ABOUT THE AMBASADORA SERIES

"AMBASADORA has a lot to say about the human spirit and it says it well." -MIKE RESNICK Nebula and Hugo Award-winning Author of the Santiago series

TALKING ABOUT MAN OF WAR

Science fiction is full of tales of displaced heroes, finding themselves involved in the conflicts of their adoptive worlds....Heidi Ruby Miller really runs with this concept, as Two Hawks finds himself equally used and abused by pretty much everyone he comes into contact with. Being a novella, it’s a fairly quick read, action-packed and gripping....I generally like to find something to criticise, no matter how small, just to avoid being taken for one of the current rash of meaningless five star reviewers that currently infest the internet, but I honestly couldn’t find anything to complain about. I genuinely hope Miller and Meteor House plan on continuing the story with further books." -DAVE BRZESKI, British Fantasy Society

TALKING ABOUT MANY GENRES

"...a beautiful and insightful must-have book for any writer, from newbie to working pro. Highly recommended!" -JONATHAN MABERRY NYT Bestselling Author of the Joe Ledger series

TALKING ABOUT STARRIE

"Take authentic, straight-ahead space opera. Stir in a highly trained, kick-ass assassin on a mission of vengeance. Toss in a career soldier and watch them battle together, and grow together, as adversity piles on. Serve hot! Heidi Ruby Miller’s STARRIE serves up the perfect concoction of nonstop, take-no-prisoners SF action and romance, set against the intriguing backdrop of the brutal and dangerous world of AMBASADORA, and deftly leaves us wanting more." -Win Scott Eckert, coauthor with Philip José Farmer of The Evil in Pemberley House and author of The Scarlet Jaguar, winner of the 2014 New Pulp Award

TALKING ABOUT MARKED BY LIGHT

"With an anthropologist’s eye for world building and an engaging fast-paced style, Heidi Ruby Miller hurtles her characters through a dystopian labyrinth in which hollow beauty is revered and love a virtual crime." -Christopher Paul Carey, SWORDS AGAINST THE MOON MEN

TALKING ABOUT MAN OF WAR

"More than just demonstrating how the best science fiction thrills with action, and explores romance in new and unexpected ways, Heidi Ruby Miller gives us something equally important -- representation, through an exploration of Farmer's classic Iroquois character Two Hawks. Anyone interested in page-turners with diversity should stop what they're doing and read Man of War." -John Edward Lawson, Bram Stoker Award finalist and author of Bibliophobia

TALKING ABOUT STARRIE

"STARRIE is one ripping fast book and a well told story. I loved it!" --Basil Sands, The Big Thrill

TALKING ABOUT GREENSHIFT

TALKING ABOUT HEIDI'S WRITING

"...a writer-crush on Heidi Ruby Miller. I mean, holy crap, this girl can write! This is how you write Science-Fiction." -CARY CAFFREY Bestselling Author of The Girls from Alcyone trilogy

TALKING ABOUT STARRIE

"Miller’s short third novel in the space-faring, caste-bound, hierarchically polyamorous, and socially striated Ambasadora universe (after 2013’s Greenshift) manages to balance the exoticized presentation of the setting with relatable human interaction...the romance between Ben and Naela highlights the emotional side of reaching out to those who are different from you, even in a world where those differences are stylized and codified." -Publisher's Weekly

TALKING ABOUT MARKED BY LIGHT

"Talk about an outlaw hero that is larger than life. Talk about a hero who changes worlds." -JENNA BENNET NYT Bestselling Author of The Fortune series

TALKING ABOUT HEIDI'S STORIES

TALKING ABOUT STARRIE

"With explosive action, kick-ass heroes and romance that hits all the right notes, STARRIE gives fans of science fiction romance everything they want—at a breakneck pace. Plan to stay up all night finishing this one, it’s impossible to put down!" - RHONDA MASON Author of The Empress Game